Peace talks with North East rebel leaders ‘good’: Pillai

Imphal: Union Home Secretary GK Pillai has described the progress of the ongoing peace talks between the Government and the rebel outfits in the North East such as the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak-Muivah) as ‘good’.

While interacting with the media at the Manipur Tribal Cultural Exchange Programme, in Imphal, Pillai said: “I don`t think there is any setback to the talks. The talks have been going on with Muivah (General Secretary of NSCN (IM)) and also took place when he came to Dimapur yesterday.”

NSCN (IM) general secretary Muivah and president Isak Chishi Swu had come to Delhi on February 27 to hold talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in a bid to solve the Nagaland issue and had termed the talks as ‘fruitful’.

Pillai has expressed hopes of more insurgents groups coming forth for amicable talks.

He said: “Security operations are underway, we are hopeful that more people will come forward for talks because it is not good to kill or beat people in jail. It is not something which anybody likes.”

“I am hopeful that with the arrest of Meghan and other UNLF (United National Liberation Front) leaders, many of them will now start to come forward for talks like the other groups in the north east region," he added.

According to Home Ministry reports, the government`s efforts to maintain peace with the insurgent groups is paying great dividends as the northeast had witnessed minimum violence in 2010.

About 20 security personnel, 94 civilians and 247 militants lost their lives in the northeast in 2010, which indicates that the scenario has improved as compared to previous years.

Thousands have died in three decades of violence since ULFA was formed in 1979 in Assam, demanding independence from India, which it accused of plundering the region`s mineral and agricultural resources.

However, public support for the group has declined in the recent years.